There is a historic opportunity to leverage billions of dollars in public infrastructure investments to create jobs, apprenticeships and more for people who don’t usually benefit from capital projects.

Atkinson’s Colette Murphy describes “community benefits” as a big idea with the potential to transform our cities, making them more equitable and democratic. Her two Toronto Star op-eds explain how this strategy can reduce poverty and build community wealth.

This innovation in the public infrastructure development process is driving demand for knowledgeable and skilled local organizers across Canada. In response, we’ve created a new leadership learning initiative.

The Power Lab is a space where community organizers in several Canadian cities will experiment with visionary strategies for creating more decent work and an equitable economy. In addition to building their local economies, organizers will build relationships and knowledge, access technology and resources, and discover their own power to collaborate on a local, national and global scale through the lab.

The Power Lab was officially launched with the Broadbent Institute’s Alejandra Bravo and 10 partners in June 2018.

This report, published in 2015, examines the structure of Community Benefits Agreements and the process for developing them in Ontario. It describes leading examples, the current policy landscape, and related strategic considerations.

Released in September 2016, a detailed, technical report by Dina Graser exploring the application of the US and UK experience with community benefits to Ontario’s current public infrastructure renewal challenges.